Grandparent's Day

I don't spend a lot of time dwelling on the fact that we don't live close to family, but we had an event last week that made me feel a little blue about the distance that spreads our families apart. Jillian's class was hosting Grandparent Day, which meant that grandparents could come for an hour of the class (at 10 a.m on a Tuesday, not a super convenient time for most of the world). They made cookies, sang songs, and apparently, took pictures with the grandparents. Her teacher requested that students who didn't have grandparents present bring pictures of their grandparents so they could share about them. So, I sent Jillian with three pictures of her biological grandparents, and made sure to write names on the back, where everyone lived, etc. I prayed she wasn't the only one without a grandparent present, and even e mailed her teacher to give her a heads up that Jillian might be a bit dramatic about the situation (one just never knows...). I explained to Jillian that some of her friends would have grandparents at school, and some would not. I told her that I didn't live close to my grandparents when I was little, either, and that many people do not. She just said, "OK, Mom", and was really excited to take her pictures to school. When I dropped her off, her teacher said, "Don't worry, Mom. She'll be fine". And she was. She came home telling me about what she said when she showed each picture, and what part she had in the cookie making. So, as usual, I worried for nothing. It was a good reminder to me that I need to not put my disappointment for her out there because she might not be disappointed at all. But still, I couldn't help but feel a little twinge of sadness reappear when I got an e mail from her teacher today with the pictures she took of Jillian that day.

Grandparents of Jillian: know that you are loved by this little girl! She was proud to share you with her class, and carried around the envelope of your pictures the entire day. When she didn't have it, she'd say, "Oh, I can't find my grandparents", or "I just dropped my grandparents on the floor, can you get them for me?" Made me chuckle.  Matt said as she was showing the pictures she took to school to him later that evening, and she got out the one of Grandma and said, "Daddy, do you miss your mom?" Before he could even answer, she pat him on the back and said, "Aww, Daddy it's OK, she's always with you!" Oh Jillian, you really are something else.